


Allergic to Love

by PuzlDragon



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Falling In Love, Idiots in Love, Kaiba Seto Has Issues, Kaiba Seto Needs a Hug, M/M, Romantic Comedy, Romantic Fluff, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Yami Yuugi | Atem Has His Own Body
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:40:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22997821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuzlDragon/pseuds/PuzlDragon
Summary: Kaiba falls in love.He hates it.
Relationships: Atem/Kaiba Seto, Atem/Kaiba Seto/Mutou Yuugi, Atem/Mutou Yuugi, Kaiba Seto/Mutou Yuugi/Yami Yuugi, Kaiba Seto/Yami Yuugi, Mutou Yuugi/Yami Yuugi
Comments: 16
Kudos: 127





	Allergic to Love

**Author's Note:**

> This idea has me laughing hysterically. Kaiba POV is delightful. Unhappy Kaiba POV is especially so.
> 
> What would make Kaiba the most unhappy? Feelings.
> 
> This isn't the only reason I am writing this, but it sure is the reason I'm enjoying it this much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can do other ships other than puzzleship! See! (Sort of.)
> 
> Also, I'm writing Kaiba as close to canon as I can for this. Aka, beyond normal human capabilities of emotional constapation and snark.

Kaiba Seto has almost never been as displeased in his life.

The only exceptions all involved his little brother being kidnapped, threatened, or otherwise endangered. And, really, that's more murderous.

Oh, Kaiba Seto is very, very displeased. Has been displeased. For almost two months. Everyone in KaibaCorp has been trying to appease him, to scurry out of the way, to complete work faster.

Which is foolish. Rushing things leads to sloppiness, leads to mistakes. If he was displeased with any of them, he would have dealt with them. Instead, people take a look at his quick strides and thunderous expression and decide to make his days worse by making errors!

But Kaiba Seto can't deal with the problems causing his ire. Can't even deal with the origins. Not even Kaiba would lash out at someone for something they did not actually have anything to do with. And they didn't. For the reason Kaiba is upset is because of himself.

Because feelings are an accursed, useless, time-wasting plague of fools and the pliable. The usable. The weak.

Kaiba clenches his fists tighter against the leather office seat.

The weak get conned. Get used. Burn resources for others they will never get back. Get into debt. Get trampled by life. Tricked, hurt, bereft.

....Family stolen, family lost, burns and hits against young skin. Souls trapped.

No, Kaiba could not tolerate this weakness any longer. He just had to find a way to deal with it.

************************

After extensive searching, Kaiba has settled on exposure therapy. The concept might normally be used on things like fear and anxiety, but an infatuation should work similarly.

After all, this is surely born out of admiration and respect and a lack of those feelings for practically every other person on the planet. By being exposed more often, then those traits should seem common place in comparison. Kaiba even went and looked through more everyday media as well as the scientific. Self help books, poems, even anonymous question advice articles. Young, first love always seems to die out over time.

Besides, it's just another form of emotional weakness.

Exposure therapy should accomplish his goal. The proper and necessary annihilation of these foolish notions. Not that he can let them know it. Either of them. He had to find a way to expose himself on a consistent basis but without letting them see or harm his vulnerability.

Kaiba has analyzed this problem at every angle. He cannot avoid the nerd herd. It is impossible. Where one goes, they all follow. What he can do is what he is doing. Making this seem like business.

It should allow him to consistency schedule his exposure, while also be able to throw the mutt out of the property any time he wished. Which is always. Oh, and he can use this to advance his actual business. The most fool proof strategy. Now he just has to find a way to approach them so they accept. He might be able to offer money and deals for the game shop, but there is the fact the old man might refuse it because of their past....interactions. If this comes across as too using them (like he is), they will refuse. Intelligent. They can win all the tournament prizes and casino wins they tried at. They don't need money. And Kaiba refuses to make friendship speeches. So how to get them on board (secretly) remains the dilemma.

The one gap in his strategy. But Kaiba is nothing if not thorough. He will have them.

****************

" **Aibou** ," Atem gasps as he dashes into the kitchen. "We have a **Code Blue-Eyes**." Yuugi braces himself. Nothing good seems to come in the vicinity of Kaiba. Mostly because Kaiba can manage massive levels of stubbornness, and viciousness. Plus, he seems to run into trouble almost as much as they do. To his credit, it's usually because Mokuba gets kidnapped. But it hardly helps with their dilemma.

They have the world's grumpiest jerk walking into their grandfather's shop.

Together they stare at each other in a shared human moment of pure apprehension and regret. Then they nod at each other, steeled by the fact they will not be alone in this.

As always, they have each other.

They walk out of the kitchen, down the stairs, and slip on their shoes at the genken. Quickly. Speedwalking. It's more of a sprint, really. The last thing they need is Kaiba being alone in Grandpa's shop. Or worse, Grandpa yelling about Kaiba being left alone in his shop.

There, in Kame Game Shop, stands Kaiba Seto. The Harbinger Of Chaos and Snark himself. He stands with perfect posture, eyeing one of Grandpa's bizarre antique games (something with a mummified creature of unidentified origin involved). His expression is a cross between bewilderment and disgust. He doesn't seem sure about whether it is safe to be in the shop with it. Wow. Yuugi relates to Kaiba. One for the record books.

"Kaiba," Atem greets bluntly. He meets his gaze head on.

Kaiba, at the sight of them, especially Atem's gaze, stiffens uncomfortably. Then relaxes bit by bit. Then stiffens again. He looks more like when he is desperate for something. For Mokuba, for his company, not to end a duel and die.

Well, terrible situation confirmed.

"Atem. Yuugi." His eyes dart to both of them. And back. And both of them. And back. _'It will be better to get it off your chest quickly,'_ Yuugi thinks. But he doesn't say it. Kaiba might die from the wound to his pride if he tries it.

"Do both of you have a half hour to spare? I have a," Kaiba clears his throat ",a business proposal that might interest you two." Atem raises a brow at him.

A not-crisis? Business? _'This is more suprising then the multiple attempts on their lives. That...doesn't mean anything good, does it?'_ Yuugi ponders.

"I'm not certain we do have time, we are busy. Maybe we can find an opening, hmm? Sometime next month, or sometime never." Atem drawls brightly. His hackles are raised from Kaiba's past. He smiles with all his teeth. Like a chubby faced shark. It's surprisingly intimidating.

 _'This is not a game of chess, can both of you set your prides aside for one single conversation?,'_ Yuugi thinks. Clearly, he needs to be the adult in the room.

"Go ahead, and lay it out, Seto. We'll let you know if we're interested or not," he states. Atem shoots him a look of _'how could you betray me like this?'_. It's all for dramatics. Always the dramatics. He'll forget it in five minutes when he wants extra mushrooms in his soup.

"Well then," Kaiba pauses, his eyes piercing them both. He can't seem to analyze what happened, but slowly moves on.

"I have a position or two open for a temporary spokesperson. For duel monsters. Perhaps, you would feel more interested when you see the hours and benefits involved?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yuugi is here for games, not mediating overgrown toddlers with truckloads of pride.
> 
> This story is part of the [LLF Comment Project](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. This author invites and appreciates feedback, including:
> 
>   * Short comments
>   * Long comments
>   * Questions
>   * Constructive criticism
>   * “<3” as extra kudos
>   * Reader-reader interaction
> 

> 
> [LLF Comment Builder](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/post/170952243543/now-presenting-the-llf-comment-builder-beta)
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> This author replies to comments.
> 
> If you don’t want a reply, for any reason (sometimes I feel shy when I’m reading and not up to starting a conversation, for example), feel free to sign your comment with “whisper” and I will appreciate it but not respond!

**Author's Note:**

> This story is part of the [LLF Comment Project](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. This author invites and appreciates feedback, including:
> 
>   * Short comments
>   * Long comments
>   * Questions
>   * Constructive criticism
>   * “<3” as extra kudos
>   * Reader-reader interaction
> 

> 
> [LLF Comment Builder](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/post/170952243543/now-presenting-the-llf-comment-builder-beta)
> 
> This author replies to comments.
> 
> If you don’t want a reply, for any reason (sometimes I feel shy when I’m reading and not up to starting a conversation, for example), feel free to sign your comment with “whisper” and I will appreciate it but not respond!


End file.
